An autumnal downpour failed to dispirit family and friends, travelling from as far afield as Goa, the United States and Germany to attend the celebrations in the U.K. , on 22nd October 2006, exactly 100 years to the date of his birth.

Born in Beira, Mozambique, to his merchant seaman father Joao Antonio De Moraes and mother Anna Blandina nee Mascarenhas, Hector, after his early education in Goa, attended a Salesian-run boarding school in Nagpur.The disciplines, ethos and values instilled in him there, remain a guiding force in his career and life to this very day.

With employment opportunities opening up in British East Africa, Hector, aged 22, found himself in the Civil Service, at the Horticultural and Agricultural research station, Njoro, in the heart of Kenya’s “White Highlands”, where he was to make a lasting impression on his superiors.

A keen sportsman, the dashing, motorcycle-riding Hector, soon became popular at the Goan Institute in the neighbouring town of Nakuru (the agrarian headquarters of the Rift Valley).

In 1940, Hector, whilst on extended overseas leave in Goa, met and married Sybil Pinto of Bombay.

Despite her being uprooted from metropolitan Bombay to the spartan conditions of rural Njoro, the newly weds soon forged a new life there together, both professionally and socially, as active members of the Nakuru Goan Institute .Their joint contribution to the Goan community in both these towns was immense. (Hector would later be elected President of the Goan Gymkhana in the capital, Nairobi in 1953).

The couple were blessed with sons John and Neville in 1941and 1942 respectively, and having now established himself as a valued member of the department, Hector was promoted in 1948, and moved to the Nakuru Agricultural Headquarters, where his prominent official role amidst a predominantly British settler community did not go unnoticed.

His rise thereafter was meteoric, soon being appointed as Establishment Officer at the Agricultural Ministry Headquarters in Nairobi. In this role, the much-respected Hector also succeeded in promoting fairness in the recruitment of staff, something which had not hitherto been in evidence.

With his contribution to the service greatly valued, he now transferred, to the Department of Education, where he ensured that suitable Kenyan candidates were selected for training at overseas universities, in preparation for self government and Kenya’s impending independence in 1963.

Retiring from the Civil Service in 1962, with many commendations, Hector was also subsequently invited to join the Nairobi office of the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations in a senior capacity. In this new role, his tact and diplomacy were invaluable in the sensitive transfer of power from the jurisdiction of the original white settlers and administrators of this programme, to the indigenous population.

In 1969, the couple relocated to Reading, Berkshire in the U.K., where their sons, including Denzil and Clive born in 1947 and 1955 respectively, had already moved to continue their education and embark on their respective careers. Here again, they became prominently active both locally as also in the wider U.K. Goan community.

Sadly, after 50 plus years of marriage, celebrated in 1990, Sybil passed away suddenly the following year, and in 1997 Hector, now aged 91 moved away to be closer to his sons. As he famously put it,” I want to make these decisions now before I get old”!

Flash forward to 22nd October 2006:

Following a celebratory Mass at the Catholic Church in Farnham, Surrey guests congregated at the residence of first-born son John, where together with siblings Neville, Denzil, Clive and their families, no effort had been spared in hosting a right royal party.

On his arrival, Hector was kept busy receiving the many congratulatory wishes. Earlier that morning, he had received a personal message from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, hand delivered by a “Knight” in bright red uniform. Congratulatory messages were also received from Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for International Development, thanking Hector for his 33 plus years of service to the British government, and also from the Secretary of State for Work & Pensions, John Hutton.

After a sumptuous luncheon, which included the signature Goan dishes of Sorpotel and Xacuti, son Denzil, in a humorous and brilliantly delivered toast, recounted the life and times of his Dad, to which Hector responded in a brief address of thanks to all.

Later Hector was serenaded with a medley of traditional Konkani songs by a quintessentially Goan quintet of long time friends and musicians.

It was a unique opportunity for friends and family from across the globe, years and generations, to be reunited and celebrate the life of this charismatic gentleman.

Chronology has dimmed neither Hector’s wit nor presence. Bandbox sharp, he lives quite independently, has powers of recall which many of us (much younger) would envy, and remains fully engaged in the topical affairs of the day.

The broad content of this article was first published , in the December 2006 issue of ‘GOA TODAY ‘magazine , and has been adapted and reproduced here with the permission of its Editor in Chief , Mr Vinayak NAIK.

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Writer Mervyn Maciel is a U.K. based contributor to GOA TODAY, who along with Hector, has his ancestral roots in Salvador-do-Mundo. (E) mervynels.watuwashamba@googlemail.com

London based co-chronicler, A. Anthony (Tony) Fernandes of Saligao and Paetona, Salvador do Mundo, is a relative of the De Moraes family
(E) collofogoti at goencar.com
(E) rockrambler at gmail.com